, 1887-09-10
FROM TURTLES BACKS.
THE REVIVAL OF THE BIG TOR
TOlSE SHELL COMB.

A Fashion of Our Grandmother That
Is Becoming Popular with Modern
Benes-How tho Combs are MRnufaot-
ured-TortoIse Shell Cap F~orepieces.
"The fashion for tortoise shell combs is
returning" said a large uptown retailer
TO a reporter. ''Some five years g
combs were considered out of fashion, and
nobody used them except ladies OF the old
school, and then the combs were very
small. But the style has been growing in
favor, and should not be surprised to see
in n few years the enormous comb of our
grardmoghers worn again"
"N8cJ the style OF the comb originate
here, or Is it imported from Paris, with
the rest Of d woman's headgearF' asked
the reporter.
''Oh, no; I buy my goods from a manu-
f]ar,r;rtr in the city who has been in the
trade for Il number OF years. The French
combs do not take here, and at the same
tig!u the designs are so elaborate hat they
cost, with the duties, too much for the
average purchaser"
On the second floor of an old fashioned
building the reporter Ound the largest
tortoise shell comb manufacturer in the
city. lie said: Tortoise shell
Grizzly from Central America and the
West India Islands. The natives trade
the she'll for provisions and clothing, and
down there it is as good as silver"
Are the shells brought here wholeP'
asked the reporter. "a
"Oh, no. When the natives catch the
tortoise they kill him and expose the shell
to the fire, which loosens the plates, and
then they are easily pulled apart. There
are thirteen plates on the back of the tor
tulse and thirteen on the stomach The
stomach plates are what we call amber
shell, and are worth more than the rest,
for when they are polished they are al
most as light as genuine amber"
Near the door sat a white haired old
Frenchman scraping and cutting some
shells which n lad took up and bound to-
gether with Il thread. A comb has to be
several shells thick. After the shells are
cut out in the general shape of the design
wanted, they are wrapped in several thick
nesses of wet cotton cloth and placed be-
tween two heavy heated irons in a press,
which is screwed down. Left there for
half an hour, the steam Yields them to-
gether nicely, and when taken out they go
TO the designer, who pastes a paper pat
tern on the shell, SO that all the delicate
illigrce work can be cut out with what
looks like an ordinary scroll saw. They
are then sent to another room, where the
rough edges are cut off with circular
Nv 'cN 40 ca 30 no biN ShA vi q ASah
pencil.
After going through several processes
the comb arrives at the last stage, the
polishing room. There are a number of
wheels of different sizes, some thicker
than others, revolving at a rapid rate.
The proprietor explained: "These wheels
are composed of many layers of muslin
cloth, and the heat generated through
friction mov all roughness and puts on
a beautiful polish, which lasts as long as
the comb
do you make any OF those very large
combs, like that specimen In the case'"
The manufacturer picked up the comb,
which measured fifteen inches wide and
eight inches high, beautifully carved, and
replied: ''That comb was sent here from
Brazil by n lady of Dom Pedro's court.
/ mended it, but 1t has never been called
for, and 1 am not sorry, for it is a curios-
ity in this country. We do not make any
like 1t. 1 have some pretty large ones,
however, for the ladies of Havana still
cling to the antique style. Tortoise shell
is used for various purposes. Here, for
instance, are a lot Of cap fore pieces for
the officers Of the Spanish navy. Each
peak weighs just one-half an ounce. -
New York Evening Sun.